Auction for tea leaves

Auction for tea leaves

A batch of new Japanese tea leaves from the central Japan city of Shizuoka is pictured on April 12, 2024, after selling for a record 1.11 mil. yen ($7,250) per kilogram at the season's inaugural auction in the renowned Japanese green tea-producing city.

MSDF unveils destroyer with U.S. missile interceptor

MSDF unveils destroyer with U.S. missile interceptor

HONOLULU, United States - The Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Kongou, berthed at the U.S. naval base in Honolulu on Dec. 13. The 7,250-ton Aegis warship will test-fire a U.S.-made missile interceptor off a Hawaii island, the first test by a country other than the United States.

(2)Japan's Aegis destroyer heads for Indian Ocean

(2)Japan's Aegis destroyer heads for Indian Ocean

SASEBO, Japan - The 7,250-ton destroyer of the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) with the advanced Aegis air defense system sails in the South China Seas for the Indian Ocean on April 10 after leaving Sasebo base in Nagasaki Prefecture as part of Japan's efforts to provide rear-area support for U.S.-led counterterrorism military operations mainly in Afghanistan.

(3)Aegis ship departs for Indian Ocean to help U.S. military

(3)Aegis ship departs for Indian Ocean to help U.S. military

YOKOSUKA, Japan - The Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Kirishima, equipped with the advanced Aegis missile-defense system, is seen sailing off Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Dec. 16. The 7,250-ton destroyer left its home base in Yokosuka earlier in the day for the Indian Ocean as part of Japan's support for the U.S.-led military operations centered on Afghanistan.

Coalition leader urges dispatch of Aegis destroyer

Coalition leader urges dispatch of Aegis destroyer

YOKOSUKA, Japan - Takeshi Noda (C), leader of the New Conservative Party (NCP), the smallest of the three ruling parties, listens to an officer during his inspection tour of the 7,250-ton Kirishima, one of Japan's four Aegis destroyers equipped with advanced antimissile and antiaircraft systems, in Yokosuka, south of Tokyo, on Nov. 27. Afterwards, Noda urged the dispatch of the destroyer to support U.S.-led antiterror operations in and near Afghanistan.